The Beauty Of Humanity
by Leelan
Summary: With the Normandy grounded on earth Garrus needs to leave to carry on the fight against the Reapers. But first he'll have to talk to Shepard and learn about the wonders of alien biology.


The Beauty Of Humanity

Earth was a weird planet. The Alliance had ordered Shepard and the Normandy to report to the human homeworld after the destruction of the relay. So he'd found some visitors guides on the extranet written specifically for turians. The intro talked about the shifting landmasses and constant temperature changes that resulted in the planets high level of genetic diversity.

There was some planetary history, how it was only in the last few hundred years, almost as soon as they'd developed global communication that they'd invented spaceflight and started to explore their solar system. It seemed impossible for a species to come so far in so short a time frame. It was no wonder some people called them upstarts.

Further in were the descriptions of the major megacities and spaceports. There were lists of tourist spots, natural attractions, landmarks and so on. He didn't think he'd be using any of that. He skipped forward to the street directories.

After they'd landed, they'd thankfully been met by Anderson. No one was expecting a warm welcome and Garrus was pleased the old human would be watching Shepards' six when he couldn't. He and the other alien crew members were obviously not affiliated with Cerberus and so had gotten the easy questioning. The human crew however were not so lucky. The now former Cerberus crew members had all decided to stay after they'd been rescued from the Collector base, despite Shepards' assurances the Alliance would not be friendly. They trusted Shepard would get them through it.

The questioning was over for the non-humans, who'd been given lodgings now that the Normandy had been impounded. Some of the crew had left but he and the others were waiting for word from Shepard, and for a trial date to be announced. Mordin had already left as soon as they knew the ship wouldn't be taking off again. Thane was staying with Dr Chakwas as his heath continued to fail. Tali was rooming with Garrus but she was already making plans to head back to the flotilla to work on the Admiralty.

He hadn't seen Shepard since she left with Anderson and he wasn't going anywhere until he knew she was alright. The news last night said Shepard had been release into protective custody prior to the trial.

'Should we try to get in contact with her?' Tali asked.

They were sitting together in front of the screen watching Shepard and what looked like several Alliance brass exiting a building surrounded by press. She looked tired.

He shook his head. 'No. We wait for her. She'll contact us when she can.'

Tali nodded. 'I know. But it's so frustrating. They're calling the relay's destruction a Batarian Massacre. Her helmeted head touched the top of her drawn knees. 'I'm worried about the Commander.'

Fourteen hours later they each received an encoded message at their private terminals, containing an address, date and time. The times were different, Tali would go earlier in the day and his contained a personal P.S.

BRING WINE.

'I can stay with..'

'No.' She said. 'If we remain together someone, somewhere, and there are many of them just now, will find a way to use you against me. I may be grounded but you're not, so I need you to continue gathering support against the Reapers.' They'd finished the wine off with dinner and were now standing in front of the floor length window looking out at the city lights.

'But I'm not a Spectre, and with the Normandy impounded I've got no transport either.' He said.

Shepard walked across the room to the desk and pulled a data pad from the top drawer. She handed it to him.

'It's old, and it's no Normandy but it will get you through the relays and back in the game again.' She handed him the datapad, it contained specs for what looked like a converted cargo ship. It was old but looked sturdy.

'How could you afford this?' He said.

'Backpay. Being dead for two years had some hidden advantages.'

He spotted the ships name.

'Michaels' Wings?' He asked.

'Every good archangel needs a pair of wings to help him get around while protecting the innocent.' She grinned.

'You need protecting too you know.' He said, moving closer to her. 'You're all I've got, Shepard.'

'That's not true, Garrus.' She gently pushed her hand against his chest, moving him back a few steps.

'Go back to Palaven and see your family. Your mother needs you more than I do right now.' He froze.

'You knew about that.'

'Yes.'

'How..?'

'Liara. The Shadow Broker has files on everyone.' She said. 'I'm sorry. For invading your privacy.'

She sounded more like she was sorry for what she'd found then how she found it.

'I'm sorry I didn't tell you, with the mission it never seemed like the right time.' Garrus said. Shepard shook her head slowly.

'It was never going to be the right time, Garrus.' She said.

'You've always known to keep private life separate from the job.' She paused. 'And I'll always be the job. This is your family, who knows when or or even if you'll get to see them again, Garrus.'

He opened his mouth to to speak but nothing came out. He wanted to argue, but could he? He and Shepard had always been about the job. They were friends, best friends. But even when they'd... become more than that. The Reapers were never far from their thoughts.

Garrus look up and stopped short.

'Shepard, your face!' He said.

He'd never seen anything like it. Water was coming out of her eyes. There didn't seem to be any irritation, the water was just dropping down her cheeks. One drop fell from the bottom of her chin. Shepard touched her face then looked at her wet fingers.

'Oh,' She said. 'Don't worry about it, it's not important.'

'Not important? That's not normal is it? Are you sick?' Her laughter sounded deeper, wetter.

'It's fine. Just a biological reaction.'

'But your face is..'

'It's fine.' Her voice wavered lightly on the command, face contorting strangely, her lower mouth was protruding and beginning to quiver.

She grabbed his arm and practically dragged him to the door.

'We can't waste any time Vakarian, we don't know how long we have until the Reapers arrive. Your orders are to gather any allies you can find and spread the word to any who will listen. Tie up any loose ends you have and report back for the trial. Am I understood?'

Shepard was almost vibrating now. She reminded him of a grenade about to be thrown. He stood to attention.

'Yes, Commander.' He said.

'I'll see you again.' She said.

'No doubt.' He replied softly.

Then he leaned down to give her a quick lick below her ear shell. A cross between the Human Kiss On The Cheek and Turian Lick Under The Mandible they'd come up with. He walked away down the corridor and headed for the elevator. Once inside he powered up the extranet on his omni-tool.

ENTER SEARCH PARAMETERS...

"HUMAN EYES LEAKING WATER" SEARCHING...

TOP RESULTS -

UNIQUE BIOLOGICAL CURIOSITIES, A STUDY BY DR AVENIA LOSSALI, ILLIUM INSTITUTE

TOP TEN WEIRDEST ALIEN TRAITS YOU NEVER KNEW! BY TELIUS THE INQUISITOR, FARLON MAGAZINE

THE BEAUTY OF HUMANITY – A GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING YOUR NEW MATE BY VASELLA NELYN

Opening the third result he was directed to the section entitled Emotional Behavior. He read until he noticed the elevator had opened at the lobby. He hit a button and it closed again, kept reading as it opened onto the corridor, kept reading until he was standing in front of the door, rang the door bell then finally deactivated his omni-tool as it opened.

He pushed his way past her.

'Lock the door and close the windows.' He said. Shepard pressed some buttons on the wall, the door clicked and the blinds closed.

'Are there any bugs?' He asked.

'Not in the bathroom.' She replied.

He took her hand and led them into the bathroom, locking the door behind them. There was a moment of silence between them. Then Shepard fell into his arms.

He didn't know how long they sat their on the floor together. It was scary sight to see, Shepard face was red. Water, tears, streamed down her face and mucus started pouring out of her nose. She wiped her face all over his shirt. He caressed her back and rubbed his face against her hair. He didn't think she was saying actual words until she said, quite clearly...

'All those people...'

And shook again. Of course logically she must know it wasn't her fault, that there had been no other choice. It had been weeks, she'd had dozens of sessions with Kelly, Dr Chakwas and who knows how many Alliance doctors. She'd talked about her guilt, anger, remorse and desire for vengeance against the Reapers. That had made sense. But humans don't always make sense it seemed. That's why they cried.

After a while they were leaning against the bathroom wall, shoulder to shoulder. Shepard was sniffing but was otherwise recovered.

'Thank you, Garrus,' She said. 'That has to be the most embarrassing thing I've done in recent memory, but I feel better.'

'I've got some vids from last shore leave that say different.' He said.

She sat up. 'You said you deleted those.'

He chuckled. 'Relax. They're for private consumption only.'

She leaned back and they sat in silence for a moment.

'Stay with me.' She said.

His head tuned, mandibles flaring.

'You still have to go.' She said sternly. 'But stay,' She leaned against him. 'For a little while.'

Garrus murmured his consent and wondered.

Maybe they weren't just the job anymore.

End


End file.
